Rep. Waters: Ethics case is about access for those who are not heard by decision makers

[bigtree]

Washington, Aug 13


Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif. gestures during her news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Aug. 13, 2010, to discuss the House ethics committee investigation. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Congresswoman Waters Responds to Pending Ethics Matter

{snip}

I want to be absolutely clear about one thing:

This case is not just about me.

This case is also about access.

It’s about access for those who are not heard by decision makers, whether it’s having their questions answered or their concerns addressed.

For the past 34 years I have served in elected office both at the state and national level, and I have made one of my top priorities opening doors and providing access for small, minority and women businesses.

In fact, my advocacy and assistance in providing access for the National Bankers Association is why we’re here today. The National Bankers Association consists of 103 minority banks, and I have worked with this association and the concerns of their banks for many years:

• I have spoken at their conventions on many occasions;
• I have participated in hearings about their issues; and
• I have worked with our federal agencies on their behalf, including the Treasury Department, FDIC, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

My telephone call to then-Secretary of the Treasury Hank Paulson during the worst economic crisis this nation faced in 80 years was to provide access to the National Bankers Association, which was concerned about the fact that Treasury had placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship. It was represented to me that many minority banks had overleveraged their capital in Fannie and Freddie, and the association wished to know whether or not their members’ capital was lost or if the government was responsible for protecting the capital that they had invested in preferred stock. They had attempted to get a meeting with the Treasury Department, but had received no response. And so, they sought me out to assist them in setting up a meeting.

The question, at this point, should not be why I called Secretary Paulson, but why I had to. The question, at this point, should be why a trade association representing over 100 minority banks could not get a meeting at the height of the crisis.

Access.

When I contacted the Treasury Secretary:

• I did not suggest any solution to the problem of the National Banker’s Association;
• I did not ask for any favors for the National Bankers Association;
• I did not ask for a meeting for any individual bank, including OneUnited Bank;
• I did not suggest who would be participants in that meeting;
• I did not attend that meeting; and
• There was no such thing as the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) at that time.

There has been a great deal of confusion over a conversation I had with Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank. The conversation I had with Chairman Frank was a conversation several weeks after this meeting had taken place and after the TARP program had been announced.

OneUnited Bank was now raising questions about assistance from TARP. Because my office’s assistance to the National Bankers Association was strictly to provide access for a discussion about the impact of the financial crisis on small and minority banks broadly, and because there was no TARP program at the time of the meeting, I did not wish to get involved with OneUnited Bank about any individual assistance or about the new TARP program. Because my husband had once served on the board of OneUnited Bank and still held investments there, I felt they should seek assistance from Chairman Frank, a Representative from the state where the bank was headquartered, and someone with a record of commitment to the health of minority banks.

It’s also important to note that no government agency or their representatives have said that I requested any special assistance or compensation for anyone or any institution, or that I influenced the TARP process in any way.

There has also been a question about whether or not I instructed my staff not to get involved with OneUnited Bank and their interest in accessing TARP funds. My staff had only been involved in understanding the impact of the financial crisis on small and minority banks broadly, and assisting in setting up the meeting with the Treasury Department for, again, the National Bankers Association. I told my Chief of Staff that:

• I had informed Chairman Frank about OneUnited Bank’s interest;
• That we were only concerned about small and minority banks broadly;
• That Chairman Frank would evaluate OneUnited’s issue and make a decision on how to proceed; and
• Given the emails that the committee has offered as evidence, we communicated with each other clearly.

So it’s not just about us.

It’s about all those who lack access.

I was honored to serve on the conference committee of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. I’m happy to say that much of the legislation I authored – access for women and minorities; rights for shareholders; a more accountable Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; and assistance for struggling and unemployed homeowners – were included in the final legislation that was signed by President Obama. I am particularly proud of the Offices of Minority and Women Inclusion that will be set up at the federal government’s financial institutions such as the FDIC, the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve, among others, to deal with the historic lack of access that minority and women individuals and institutions have had in hiring, decision-making, contracting and procurement opportunities.

And over the past year, I and the nine other Congressional Black Caucus Members of the Financial Services Committee have been meeting with the National Banker’s Association, the National Newspaper Publishers Association, the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters, the National Association of Minority Auto Dealers, the National Association of Securities Professionals, and the National Bar Association, among others, discussing the plight of minority businesses, their lack of access to capital, and the lack of support from their government in banking, advertising, and consulting contracts.

Access is key to understanding the scope of this case.


read more: http://waters.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=203121

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ThomCat]

2. Given her history. I absolutely believe her.

She stands up for poor and minority communities. She has been a BIG supporter of getting banks to loan money fairly to minority communities.

I would not be surprised at all to hear that the Treasury Dept was stonewalling small and minority owned banks because they were too busy getting on their knees to help and protect the biggest banks, and especially Goldman Sachs.

I would not be the least surprised if the small and minority owned banks were originally going to take the brunt of the fall, until they managed to get in the door and make their own voices heard.

I would not be surprised to learn that she had to play a part to keep some level of fairness at the Treasury Dept.

[The Magistrate]

3. Indeed, Sir: The Charges Are Nonesense

How odd a proclaimed 'housecleaning' in the House of Representatives comes up with nothing but a pair of leading black Representatives....

[bigtree]

5. just in time for the midterms

Both of their constituencies will likely work hard to keep them in their fold. Rep. Rangel is already pushing forward with his campaign.

[sixmile]

4. I agree and disagree with her argument

While I agree that the little guys who don't have access to legislators should have it, I disagree that a lobbying group of over 100 banks qualifies as a little guy.

[The Magistrate]

6. In That League, Sir, These Are Pikers

Their total assets are about thirty billions. Bank of America alone recieved some fifty billions direct from the government, plus over a hundred billions in guarantees against loss; it holds assets rated at over one and a half trillions. And it is just one of several mega-banks....

[sixmile]

7. No wonder the people can't get representation

Too much money running Washington.

[bigtree]

9. most of those banks are designed to serve the 'little guy'

Small businesses and moderate-to-low-income individuals find these institutions receptive to their requests for help in establishing neighborhood enterprises which, in turn, provide much needed employment and a revenue base to develop on. This is how many of these economically-devastated communities have managed to grow out of decades-long cycles of poverty. The Representative is correct in characterizing these institutions as representative of the 'little guy', at least when compared to those institutions which have recently (and in the Bush-era) received the lion's share of attention and public resource from the Treasury.

[Laughing Mirror]

8. Superb response!

Thanks to Representative Waters for not only laying out the facts but letting us know what this really is about.

Great picture too.

[BlackHoleSon]

10. Fair Hearing

Now if this excellent point by point rebuttal, including the all-important backstory, can get a fair hearing - or if the smear has already been accomplished.

[bigtree]

12. as far as her seat is concerned

. . . I think it's a safe bet that the majority of her constituents aren't buying any of these charges. If anything, these will likely rally them to her cause and support.

As for the rest of the scheme to embarrass the party . . . I can't imagine the public has forgotten what crooks the republicans have been over the past decade. Look for reminders from our candidates in the upcoming campaigns . . .

[femrap]

11. I love her....

and TPTB are behind this witch hunt against her.